A wide variety of gun storage safes and cases are currently available. However, there is no universal solution to fill every role, or to fit every budget. Storage options are intended to perform one or more of the following principal tasks, which they do with varying degrees of effectiveness. These include holding the firearm out of sight; preventing the gun from firing; protecting the gun from physical damage; and acting act as a theft deterrent.
Gun storage devices capable of being carried in and/or used in motor vehicles are known. Gun storage devices, referred collectively herein as gun cases, for storing a gun such as shotgun or rifle. Gun cases of this type currently available on the market are typically weather-resistant and/or weather-proof, and are made from durable hard or soft material. Most gun cases have a padded, shock-absorbing interior to protect the firearm during transportation. Some gun cases even have multi-purpose storage compartments or modules that are attached or integrated to the interior and/or exterior of the case.
Guns and rifles are relatively expensive items and many gun and hunting enthusiasts spend thousands of dollars for handmade and hand crafted shot guns and rifles. Indeed, some handcrafted firearms such as those custom made by Beretta, Krieghoff and Perazzi can cost from $25,000 to $50,000 with some well exceeding $100,000. While the typical gun case might be suitable for generally protecting the gun from physical damage, these cases do little to conceal the nature of the case contents or to deter or protect those contents from theft.
Examples of such gun cases can be found in the patent literature as well as commercial brochures and advertisements for gun cases. In its most rudimentary form, U.S. Pat. No. 2,531,550 to Bradley et al. discloses a commonly used suitcase-like gun case formed from a moldable material, such as a synthetic resin, which has compartments or cavities for the gun parts and for accessories, in which the carrying handle is directly secured to the part of the case in which the gun parts and accessories are supported. The gun case protects the gun parts from moisture and other abrasive or corrosive materials and can conveniently be used to support and protect the gun from coming in contact with the ground. The cavities may include cover plates, felt pads or other securing means to hold the gun within the cavities during transportation. The gun case of the Bradley disclosure is a type of one of the most common commercially available gun cases and had no provisions for securely mounting it to a motor vehicle.
U.S. Pat. No. 2,706,036 to Neal relates to a shock proof gun case especially adapted for guns equipped with telescopic sights or other mechanism easily rendered inoperative if the gun is subjected to severe jars or strains. The case includes an internal compartment surrounded on all sides by a heavy padding of foam rubber or its equivalent, thereby protecting the gun and its accessories from injury or being thrown out of adjustment by the rubber cushion. The rubber cushion is of sufficient thickness that some pressure is required to close the case, thereby causing the gun to be partially imbedded in the cushion when at rest. The gun case is not particularly suited for motor vehicles.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,326,385, to Pinkerton et al., pertains to a vehicle mounted gun rack including various mechanical locking devices for locking guns in a rack for safe keeping therefor and an electrical locking means operatively connected to the vehicle battery. While adapted for motor vehicles, the firearms remain in full view at all times.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,857,491 to Townsend et al. also relates to gun racks of the horizontal type with means provided to lock guns in position against unauthorized removal and discloses a vehicle mounted gun rack having a slidable mechanism thereon for cooperating with the stock portion of a gun to lock the gun in position in said gun rack and a key operated lock for operating the slidable mechanism to lock said gun in position or to enable removal of said gun from said rack. The locking gun rack may offer some measure of security by providing locks for the guns but the guns remain in full view at all times.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,495,969 to Cardenas discloses a portable gun rack adapted to engage the rear of the back seat of a sports vehicle which allows the guns to be supported in such a manner so as to have them oriented scope-side down which is a more stable manner for transport. The rack is secured to the vehicle seat via tie-downs and a decorative over cover for the gun rack is provided to help to disguise the presence of the weaponry and thus to reduce the incidence of theft. The gun rack disclosed offers little by way of effective security for the guns or for hiding the gun rack and seriously deterring theft.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,683,021 to Settina teaches a gun case for mounting in a vehicle including a container within which the gun is substantially entirely contained and an electrically actuated locking container lid. The lock includes a plurality of latches spaced along the gun case and a common actuator plate which slides longitudinally to unlock the latches in response to an electrical actuator device such as a solenoid or an electric motor. The container pivots down to a lowered unlocked position away from the lid to enable the gun to be removed from the container and a key actuated mechanism moves the actuator plate to unlock the container when the electrical actuator does not operate.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,850,796 to Cislo teaches a gun lockbox resistant to forced entry including a guard member formed to an inside edge of a housing half, and one or more locks in an opposing housing half which engage the guard member, for securing the housing halves together and preventing insertion of a prying tool there between. The gun lockbox may also include clip members to attach the lockbox to a stationary object within a transport vehicle or to a wall, the clip members preferably consisting of complementary brackets with the attachment hardware being located inside the lockbox, to prevent easy theft of the lockbox outright.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,443,346 to Haass a gun rack for nondestructive use in any of a variety of vehicle models—generally comprises two substantially L-shaped vehicle engagement members, each having a leg portion and a foot portion, and a cross bar disposed between the upper end of the leg portions. The cross bar, or member, is dependently supported by the leg portions and comprises at least one trough adapted to support the stock portion of a gun. The gun rack is specifically adapted for repeated secure placement in, and total removal from, a vehicle without incurring damage to the vehicle during placement, use or removal.
U.S. Pat. No. 8,104,313 to Wolfe pertains to a security enclosure for a handgun includes an enclosure base having an opening to an interior portion and a cover configured to selectively cover the opening in the enclosure base. The cover may be configured in a manner to rotate from a first position in which the cover blocks access to the interior portion of the enclosure base to a second position in which the cover allows access to the interior portion of the enclosure base. A gun enclosure may be rotatably disposed within the enclosure base. The security enclosure may be configured in a manner allowing it to be securely affixed within the vehicle so that it cannot easily be removed by unauthorized persons. A biometric recognition device may be configured to operatively unlock the cover when exposed to a required feature of an authorized user.
U.S. Pat. No. 8,186,188 to Brown teaches a system for securely storing a weapon within a tray including a portable safe having an interior space sized and shaped for retaining the tray and the contained weapon. In addition, the system includes a mounting module attachable to a fixed surface including specifically motor vehicles. The mounting module includes an interior space for holding the portable safe and an access control system for locking the portable safe within the interior space of the mounting module. The access control system allows access by an authorized user and denies access of the weapon within the portable safe to an unauthorized user. The weapon is contained in the tray, the tray is retained in the portable safe and the portable safe is held in the interior space of the mounting module. Multiple mounting modules can be positioned throughout a home, office, vehicle, or wherever rapid access, convenience and weapon security are desired.
U.S. Pat. No. 8,752,745 to Bond et al. teaches a firearm case which is attachable to a motor vehicle and specifically a motorcycle. The case comprises a frame which holds and encloses a firearm. The frame includes a firearm lock and latch that securely locks the firearm in place. A housing surrounds the frame as to enclose the frame and firearm, safe from the weather, theft and minor damage. An optional remotely operated control system unlocks the firearm case and the firearm lock simultaneously for quick and easy access to the firearm.
Finally, patent publication US 2013/0284780 to Beckwith et al. relates to a multi-compartment gun case for front or rear mount on an ATV type motor vehicle. The gun case comprises an upper storage compartment suitable for storage of a rifle and a lower storage compartment suitable for storage of other equipment. The upper storage compartment opens towards the seating position of the ATV to allow for quick and easy access of a stored rifle to the driver without the need to dismount, while the lower storage compartment opens away from the driver towards an area accessible when dismounted so that a user does not need to mount the ATV to access the lower storage compartment.
It will be appreciated that the prior art lacks a suitable case for both protecting and securely transporting firearms that may be unobtrusively and temporarily or permanently attached to an interior surface of a motor vehicle while concealing both the contents of the case and the means by which the case is secured.
Most prior art gun cases are easily recognizable as gun cases and in many instances particularly lack any theft deterrent value when the cases are in plain view of an observer who may wish to steal or otherwise gain unauthorized access to the contents of the gun cases. Additionally, the prior art gun cases also lack a soft-sided protective outer cover or shell of durable material that is cut and/or tear proof and internal cable wire systems that are integral to the securing mechanism of both the contents of the case and of the case to a vehicle on to which the case is semi-permanently attached.
Presently, there is no effective way to secure firearms in the in the back of SUVs or pickup trucks. Pickup trucks, for example, lack locking trunks, and there are no means to secure cases onto the flat bed area and in SUVs there is virtually nothing to prevent a thief from simply smashing a vehicle window and grabbing a gun case which is left out in plain view. High value shotguns, rifles and other firearms require a higher level of security.
The gun safe of the present invention has the advantage over these prior patents that the gun is completely contained within an outer shell within which a gun case is locked securely to protect it from being tampered with by unauthorized personnel and to prevent it from authorized removal by intentional efforts of unauthorized persons. Another advantage is that the outer soft-sided protective container housing the gun case allows the gun safe to be displayed in such a way so as to not reveal or even indicate the contents therein.
Still another advantage of the gun safe of the present invention is that a rigid, semi rigid, or soft-sided outer shell container provides added measures against tampering with and/or removal of the contents of the safe. The gun safe of the present invention has the added advantage that it may be securely permanently or semi permanently mounted in a vehicle in a secure storage position using pre-installed and/or aftermarket cargo mounting tie downs and brackets in such a way that the securing mechanisms for the gun safe remain substantially obstructed from the plain view of an observer.